


raise a crimson flag

by DreamyRequiem



Category: Tales of Link (Video Game)
Genre: Game Novelization, Gen, Multi, slight changes to the story for better flow, thanks to @liafyse on tumblr for recording the story too!!!, the game is ending so here we go with this project, the title is supposed to be a reference to the game's op, what do you mean i can't ship those four together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2019-03-09 20:32:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13489212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamyRequiem/pseuds/DreamyRequiem
Summary: It's a never ending spiral of agony, where dear ones die over and over again. Nothing can stop it, not even the Goddess that rules the heavens.Except...perhaps, just once, this spiral will break. Perhaps, finally, after lifetimes, they will hear her voice once more.





	1. begin {again}

**Author's Note:**

> Unbeta`d

_"Dear one, this world is a cycle."_

_"What's a cycle, mama?"_

_A chiming laugh. "Hm...Well, the seasons are a cycle. Every year we have spring, summer, autumn, and winter, yes? That is a cycle."_

_"Oh! But how is the world a cycle?"_

_"Well, you see, many things that have happened in this world have happened before. Many things...including you and I speaking as we are now."_

_"Mama, I don't understand."_

_A hand ruffled soft brown hair. "You don't have to. Not yet, dear one. Now why don't you go and play with your brother?"_

* * *

The sun burned through his eyelids and woke him from his slumber. Or at least he thinks it's a slumber--He's not entirely certain he knows what that is. The thought makes him frown, his eyes still shut and his face scrunched up.

A quiet giggle. What? Who was laughing and what were they laughing at?

...Were they laughing at him?

He frowned and wiggled his toes: Maybe if he opened his eyes he'd remember what he was supposed to be doing. He strained to get up and felt the wisp of a hand touched his shoulder and a soft chiming voice speak--but he couldn't hear a word.

Hmm. What was he doing, sleeping in the middle of the road? He eyeballed the ground and then looked back and forth. Where was he going and why had he passed out in the middle of the road like this?

Still frowning, he started walking in one of the directions. Better he start moving instead of just staying there and hoping for the best. He'll take what he can with what he had. Which, right now, was basically nothing. Well, besides the clothes and armor he wore but did that really count?

The sun rose to the highest point on the sky when he heard it. A distant cry, so far away he could barely hear it. Straining his ears, he closed his eyes to ty and focus on the sound of the far away voice, yelling for--him, maybe?

 _\--ave this world. We need you, Great Savior._ The voice called across miles and acres. _Please, I'm begging you! Only you can save us!_

He felt a pull on his navel and--then, collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. It had felt like, for a single moment, like he had been squeezed through all of time and space. People around him were talking and he struggled to stand. Who--? Oh. One of the voices sounded like the voice who had called to him earlier, low but feminine and he turned his head.

A small furry thing was on the ground next to him, as if standing to protect him from something. Beyond it was a girl wearing a pink jacket and, from where he was lying, a pair of tiny black shorts. If it wasn't for the tough looking stockings, he'd probably be scolding her for trying to fight with so little protection. Yet...even beyond her was another figure, hidden in a haze of purple.

He blinked and the haze vanished. A man stood there now, dark hair and clothes, with a ridiculos amount of blades on his person. He was holding something in his hand and he can't help but feel his attention be naturally drawn to it: Something about it wasn't...right.

"--entreat the Graat Savior for aid!" The furry thing was saying and holy shit it was talking? He's pretty sure small furry things aren't supposed to be able to talk.

The girl looked grim as she said, "Yeah, I know." She turned her head to him over her shoulder, her sword still drawn and pointed at the man. "I'm sorry. I know we've just met, and this is...sudden, and I can't even explain why we pulled you here. But I really. Really need your help. Like, Desperately."

Furry thing looked at him as the girl turned her head back to the man. "You are the great savior that Lady Sara and I have been searching for for so long. Please, take this stone!" A stone made of rainbow lights clattered to the ground next to him and he unconsciously reached for it.

"I understand how much we're asking here!" The girl--Lady Sara?--yelled. "But I'd do anything to save my brother from the seeds of ruin!"

The man before them just laughed and let go of the strange object he'd been holding. It seemed to break and expand, revealing a monster in only seconds. It was definitely no normal monster and he felt himself seize up. Whatever that was it...it made him feel strangely afraid.

Furry thing growled. "It's a ruinator! The sprout born of a seed of ruin!"

"Fight with us! Use your stonecanting to manifest the heroes from the stone!," Lady Sara said as she brandished her saber. Stonecanting?? He had absolutely no idea what that is. It seemed like it was something he should know but...

He didn't have time to think as the beast came charging at them. Lady Sara caught one of its tusks with her sword and dodged out of the way. Furry thing nimbly leapt away, disappearing into the rumble of the ruins around them. Which left him standing still in the monster's wake. Yelping, he rolled away and felt another pull at his navel.  But this was--different.

It wasn't the pull of teleportation.

A woman with long black hair and fiery colored yukata appeared from thin air, followed by several others he couldn't see form his spot. The nine new figures dove forward, each of them striking the beast and causing it to fall to its' knees. Lady Sara zipped forward and striked its side. Purple fluid splashed out and evaporated as soon as it hit the ground, as if it had never been there at all.

A girl all in pink danced around like she was splashing in the rain before she slammed her umbrella against the monster. It shrieked and he gapped because how in the heavens did an umbrella do damage enough to cause pain like that? The girl spun right out of sight and he took the chance to scramble to his feet.

When he stood, he finally realized that his hand was warm from the rainbow stone Furry Thing had given him. He tucked it away as he backed off from the fighting. Before him a girl with pink hair bounced and sliced the beast open with her great sword. She spun away, her green ribbon and white dress disappearing from his view and Sara stabbed her sword into the monster’s throat.

It died with little fanfare.

He and Lady Sara watched the nine figures fade away and he wondered for a moment who they were. Maybe he could just poke the stone until it told him? He had no idea how any of this worked and he really wished he had some sort of manual.

Lady Sara hummed as her gaze flicked from the spot the figures had been and the beast's evaporating form. "So that's stonecnating, huh? You completely wrecked that ruinator!" Furry thing called out a warning and Lady Sara gasped, raising her sword to deflect the dagger that had been thrown at her. "Caesar!" She cried, lowering her blade as the dark haired man vanished further into the ruins and away from their sight.

"I fear he has gotten away, Lady Sara." Furry thing seemed apologetic about the man's disappearance. Caesar, he supposed. He wondered what his connection to Lady Sara was.

Speaking of, Lady Sara took a few steps forward. "We need to go after him!" It seemed like she was about to run after him but stopped as she remembered something. Her shoulders slumped as she turned to him. "But…before that, I think we owe the Savior an explanation. Let's explain while we move?"

"Agreed." Furry thing bowed his head to him before he led the way out of the ruined buildings they were among. "Indeed we do. Forgive us, Great Savior, for asking so much yet saying so little." He frowned down at the little thing as they seemed to wait for his response.

...What was he supposed to say? He didn't have much opinion on the matter, which was probably a bad thing. It's not like he really had anywhere he was going or doing so being dragged here wasn't that big a deal. What he really wanted to know about was how this stonecanting thing even worked--and he had a feeling these two didn't have the answers to that.

"It's...fine?" He finally mumbled, as he realized they were waiting on him. "I didn't expect to be basically dropped in the middle of a fight, but I'm fine with this."

Lady Sara smiled. "You might've already heard, but my names Sara! I'm an adventurer. And…thanks for fighting with us back there. I don't think we'd have made it through without you." She smiled, big and wide and he suddenly decided he did like that smile. Weird thought, that. She continued. "We pulled you into this without an warning and you still saved us! You're a...well, really nice person huh?"

What else was I supposed to do, just let you die? He thought. No way.

Furry thing leapt up to Sara's shoulder, balancing there with the agility of a cat. "I am Lippy, a sprite sent from the heavens to find the Great Savior. And you are the person my goddess Leonne as prophesied will save this land from the seeds of ruin!"

Seeds of what? They'd mention it before but he hadn't stopped to think about it at the time. What in the world was a seed of ruin? Was it that purple thing that Caesar had?

"Goddess Leonne explained that you had the gift of a stonecantation--a power to summon great heroes from hero stones!" Sara looked starry eyed as she said this. He could only watch her in bemusement: It wasn't that great was it? But if that power was what he had done earlier...maybe it was something to be excited by.

Lippy leapt down from her shoulders as they stepped out of the ruined buildings into a forest clearing. "The ruinator you just fought had been sealed away in the heavens since antiquity, held in a seed of ruin. But someone broke that seal and the seeds rained down on the world below." Lippy seemed to stare off and he wondered if the sprite had been there when it had happened.

Yet...something seemed off. As if there was something wrong with what Lippy was saying, but no one but him actually knew that, not even Lippy himself. He wondered what it was.

"Left alone, the seeds...sprout, for lack of a better word, and become ruinators. They attack people or start contaminating the surrounding area or...sometimes they possess people." Sara sat down heavily on a tree root, looking pained. He wondered why--and then she said, "My brother was one of them." And he knew why. Was her brother that Caesar guy?

She was so despondent Lippy apparently decided to leap up and sit on her lap to try and be a comfort. From his new spot, where Sara stroked his fur, he said, "The goddess I serve, Leonne, is wielding her power from the heavens to slow the sprouting of the seeds. In the meantime she has ordered me to find--well, you, Great Savior. The one who can command the hero stones."

"She can't just stop the seeds?" He asked, curious. "She is a goddess, right?"

Lippy just looked sad. "Unfortunately, it seems the seeds themselves are beyond the power of the heavens to destroy. Only the hero stones can destroy them and you are the only one who can wield that power."

He mumbled a quiet okay to Lippy before sitting down near the two and closing his eyes. The breeze shook the leaves of the tree they sat at the foot of. Some of the leaves fluttered down from the trees and got cut in their hair. He tugged one free from his hair and looked into the forest. A river flowed somewhere in that forest, the babbling brook echoing through the forest.

...This was nice. He had a feeling he didn't often get to sit down like this and rest in this calm atmosphere. Like he was always fighting and--he frowned as his thoughts stuttered off and spiraled away, like it had never been there in the first place. He didn't even notice as it faded away and a new thought surfaced.

He wanted to protect this calm world. He wanted to it to be peaceful and calm, always. If Lippy was right...then the seeds of ruin and the ruinators would destroy it. Either by killing, corrupting, or possessing and if he wanted to protect this peaceful calm...

"Sara--"

"I--"

They stopped and looked at each other. Lippy chuckled at them, amused by the fact they had spoken at the same time. He flushed but smiled at Sara. "You go on--I can wait."

Sara smiled back. "I was just going to ask what your name is. We haven't actually asked--we've just been calling you the Great Savior."

"My name?" He stopped to think. What was it again...? Oh, right. "Ah, I think my name is Alberic."

"Alberic?" Sara grinned at him, having finally relaxed from the fighting earlier. "That's a great name! But kinda long...can I just call you Al?"

He hummed. Al, huh? "Yea, alright that's fine." Alberic returned her grin with a smile.

Lippy flicked his tail. "Hm...as a mere sprite, I shall call you Lord Alberic. Now, Lady Sara, do you remember what you showed me?" 

Sara gasped, clapped her hands, and pulled a necklace up. A small carved stone dangled from it but--it was the same as the rainbow stone Lippy had given Alberic. "Lippy said this was a key hero stone? You can carry that stone you had earlier within it."

Alberic blinked as she unchained the necklace and held it out. "Are you...sure? I can just hold onto this stone--"

"You're gonna need another way to hold them!," Sara said sternly, "You'll be carrying a lot of hero stones eventually, so a key hero stone like this is something you're gonna need."

He studied her face and nodded. Alberic could tell just from her expression that she wasn't going to take no for an answer. It'd be better to just take the key stone and ask her about why it was already a necklace later. He pulled out his own hero stone as he took the necklace. Hesitantly, Alberic held up the necklace's stone neck to his and the latter glowed and faded into the former, like it had never been there to begin with.

Huh. Weird.

"Speaking of hero stones," Lippy said, "I believe now would be a good time to tell what I know of stonecanting, Lord Alberic. Stonecanting is the ability to manifest the warriors within the hero stones, and then have them fight at your side."

Sara nodded, one hand on Lippy's fur. "They say only the savior can do that. So that savior has to be you, Alberic. Are you an adventurer too? You've got that chest plate..."

Oh no. Alberic hesitated. An adventurer, huh? That'd probably be a good cover but why would he even need one? It's not like he could remember anything that would need to be covered. So maybe...he should just tell them the truth?

The truth that he can't remember anything besides his name?

"Actually..." Lippy studied him. "There was something you said earlier, Lord Alberic, that confused me. You said that you think your name is Alberic--Why is this?"

He internally sighed: Alberic planned to tell them the truth anyway but now he felt bad he hadn't said anything earlier. "I, uh. My name is all I remember. That is to say, I don't remember anything besides my name and even then I wouldn't have remembered it if you two hadn't asked me my name."

Sara's eyes went wide. He unconsciously ducked his head at her clear distress. Was she upset he hadn't said anything earlier or...?

"What can you remember?" She demanded. "Where were you before you came here, do you remember where you're from, what--?"

Alberic waved his hands, startled by the flood of questions. "I--Slow down a bit, Sara? I can only answer so many questions at once. I can still tell you now, though, that the answer to most of those is a no."

Lippy's ears seemed to lower as he sighed deeply. "I wonder what could of transpired to cause your amnesia, Lord Alberic. It must've been truly traumatic to cause you to lose your memories like this." Alberic kind of wanted to each over and pet the poor sprite, to comfort him. He's not sure that Lippy would appreciate that from him, considering they were still practically strangers.

"There must be something to do to help with your memories...," Sara said, looking downtrodden.

Hrm. "Well, if we're going to be out trying to stop the seeds of ruin, I suppose we could also look for a way to get my memories back." Alberic shrugged nonchalantly, smiling at the two.

Sara looked startled, her eyes wide at his words. "Oh my!" Lippy looking up from his spot on Sara's lap. "You will be willing to purify the seeds of ruin?"

"Are you sure? You don't have to, just because we asked you know!" Sara's surprise made way for an expression of pure determination.

Alberic smiled at them both. "Why not help? I don't have anywhere to be or do--not that I remember--but it'd be kinda crappy of me not to help when I'm the only one who can help out. Besides, I'm kinda worried about just...leaving it be."

"O-oh!" Sara flushed and looked embarrassed by that--Alberic wondered why. Wasn't it normal to be worried about the world and the people in it like that? Weird.

Lippy leapt from Sara's lap to the spot between them both, beaming up at Alberic. "Even though you're suffering from amnesia! I am touched by the depth of your kindness." Alberic flushed--Hadn't he said it would be good for his amnesia too? Well, it had been an afterthought, but...

Sara was watching him with a bashful smile and he wondered why she was blushing like that? How strange: He has a feeling he doesn't really know how to deal with people's surprise at his supposed kindness. "Thank you so much for this, Al. You're just...a really great person, you know? And I promise! We'll get your memories back somehow!"

He flushed at the gratitude and promise. There was a warm feeling in his chest and he thought: This is friendship, maybe? I hope so.

Lippy was using magic to fiddle with the object hanging from his neck as he thought. "Perhaps all it will take is returning to place you've been before and they will all come back to you. Considering we will likely be going all over the world to find the seeds, there is no doubt we should come across at least one place you've been to before."

Sara nodded in agreement and stood up. "Well!," She said, "I think it's time we get going--Are You guys rested enough for our walk to the nearest town?"

They all nodded in agreement and the trio all got up and began their walk from the forest clearing. The road they eventually found was nothing like the road he had woken up on--this one was less worn, less well traveled. The other one had even had distant signposts! There was nothing like that in sight here.

Lippy alternated from walking to standing on Sara's shoulders. He never did approach Alberic but he had a feeling that had to do more with the fact that Lippy was far more familiar with Sara than Alberic--which spoke of them being together for a while.

He wondered for how long.

Disregarding the path, the rest of the area looked rather nice. The scenery was lovely, greenery everywhere. It was incredibly scenic and Alberic admitted to himself that it was a lovely view. He hoped that he'll get to see this more often--and that this sort of view will stay. Especially with the seeds wandering around.

It was as he was looking around that he spotted the first obstacle. "Sara, Lippy! Monsters!" His hand wrapped around the key stone around his neck and the nine figures he had summoned before returned. Sara followed his example and kicked off the first bird like monster that had approached her. With her sword out, she stabbed it as she landed, pining the bird monster on the ground. It shrieked and the black haired woman he had summoned before zipped back and finished the monster Sara pined.

Alberic wished he could know what their names were--maybe he could talk to them after the fire is over. Lippy cast a support arte over them and Alberic felt a strange stir under his skin--doesn't he know how to do something similar?

He frowned but focused his magic into the stone more. He can think about that later, he decided as purple haired girl in pink slapped another monster with her closed umbrella. His gaze kept being drawn to the third of the summoned heroes, a girl with pink hair and white clothes, and he wondered who she was, more so than the others. After all, she was familiar unlike the two other women--who was she?

His thoughts wavered off as a monster drew near. One of the six figures he couldn't quite see yet dove forward and kicked it back. Alberic grimaced: If that hero hadn't shown up, he would've been killed. Maybe...maybe he should pick up a weapon or learn some of the artes Lippy was tossing around.

Speaking of, Lippy's final arte finished off the last of the monsters and the sprite stretched like a cat. "It seems you're getting a better control of your stonecanting, Lord Alberic!" Lippy chirped as he finished stretching. Sara stepped up behind Lippy, grinning at him.

"I'm still having some difficulties." Alberic admitted. "I wish I had something else to help, too, besides the stonecanting."

"Still, though! I bet we could take another seed of ruin. Lippy...?," Sara said, her hands on her hip as she gave him a look of utter confidence.

Lippy hummed in thought and the weird magic hands appeared again as he fiddled with the thing hanging from his throat again. "Let me commence a search for one nearby. If there isn't, I suppose we'll have to continue on until we find one." And then he went quiet, tapping at the...thing? Board?

Alberic stared at it for a few moments before looking at Sara. "What is that thing? How does it even sense seeds...?"

"Huh?" Sara frowned in thought, tugging on the end of her ponytail. "That's from Leonne. Lippy for it when he came here. It's a...fono...foto...thingy..?

Ah. So not even Sara really knew what it was.

Lippy cleared his throat, looking proud and pelased. "It is no mere phonophototabulus! It is a Sacred Magic Artifact Phonotototabulus! Or 'SMART PHON' for short." Why did that shortening make Alberic feel weird? Like he was uncomfortable and annoyed at the same time? Lippy continued. "I can use the smartphon to check for magical irregularities.  It is one of several useful functions!"

"Right..." Sara tilted her head down at the sprite. "Well, what did you find?"

He ducked his furry head, looking apologetic. "It is reporting magical abnormalities to the north. However, I cannot be sure that they're related Caesar."

"That's okay, Lippy. Either way, we can't ignore it! Time to head north!" Sara pointed almost dramatically towards the path they had already been taking. Alberic stifled his smile and laughter: It wasn't nice to laugh at other people.

Lippy dashed ahead, stopping once he reached the path. "Then let us proceed, Lady Sara!" Alberic smiled at Lippy's infectious eagerness as he exchanged a look with Sara.

As he jogged to catch up to Lippy, Alberic had the strangest thought: That this time would be different. But what did that mean, 'this' time?


	2. through the borderlands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> unbeta`d
> 
> 15 pages....long.....

Sara peered into the shadowed forest, her hand over her eyes to shield them from the sun. Alberic peered in as well, wondering if he could see anything Sara couldn't. He couldn't see anything of interest but Sara nodded as if she had spotted something in between the trees.

"I don't see anything close enough to us to give us trouble," She said, "So we're free to keep moving on forward."

Lippy nodded as he looked up from his smartphon. "The monsters in this area are fairly weak as well, so you should have no problem if we do come across something." Sara held out her arms and Lippy leapt u into them with a deep sigh before continuing. "However...I do hear some loud voices on ahead. Do be careful."

Alberic frowned and peered ahead as Sara stepped forward, her glimmering sword held in her free hand. "Sounds like they're at the trailhead, through the trees. Maybe they're going the same way we are?"

That was some optimism.

The trio made their way into the scenic woods, the heavy smell of fresh flowers hanging over them. Lippy seemed content in Sara's arms as she held her sword loosely at her side. Alberic fiddled with his own key stone, wondering who it could be, this far out.

Once they reached the forest trail, it was easy to see the bickering people: One was on the ground, clutching her staff with both of her hands, despairing over something that had happened. As they approached, the second figure, who was standing, said, "How did you manage to trip over that, Remi? It's right in plain sight. How could you have missed it?"

They must've been talking about the heavy rock sitting on the ground between them. Alberic mused that just maybe the girl on the ground was a klutz. "Aaaagh, I'm sorry. But it's okay--it's just a scrape. I'll be fine." The girl seated on the ground pushed herself up, using her staff as leverage.

The smaller figure huffed as Alberic, Sara, and Lippy grew closer. "Oh, yeah, I feel safer with the world's clumsiest bodyguard. This is why I wanted to travel alone! Thanks, Remi." Alberic winced: Okay, so he had thought something similar. But that's not something you should just say to someone's face, especially with that much sarcasm.

Of course, the staff wielder--Remi--didn't seem to mind. "And leave the world's foremost magical artes researcher unattended?! That's completely out of the question!," She said, determinedly. "I don't care how tough you are. We can't allow you to conduct your research without protection!"

Sara peered at them out of the corner of her eye as the three of them passed the duo. In their bickering, it seemed they hadn't noticed the three of them approaching--or them moving right on past them.

"I don't see how you face planting on rocks protects me! But whatever, fine. Let's just get moving." The smaller figure, a young girl in almost as much red as the staff wielder, huffed.

Alberic glanced at Sara out of the corner of his eye, pursing his lips so as to stop his laughter from slipping out. Sara was grinning, not at all trying to hide her amusement. It was just luck that they were both passed the duo so they wouldn't see her grin.

There was a quiet cough from his companion. "Well. They sure do make for an interesting pair, huh?" Sara grinned at him. He grinned back, a light feeling burning in his chest.

He was very glad to have met Sara and Lippy so soon. Maybe that was a weird thought or a weird way to put it, but he was happy with being considered weird. Regardless of that thought, the trio continued on their way. They stopped on occasion to take care of their stamina, letting them recover from the walking.

"Too bad we don't have an airship, like in the old stories." Sara joked at one point.

Lippy sighed deeply in response. "Perhaps I should've requested one from my Goddess before coming down..."

Alberic and Sara stared down at Lippy with matching baffled expressions. "What do you mean, requested one?" Sara squeaked.

The sprite gave them both an odd look. "Were you not just talking about it--?"

"I-it was a joke! Those're just stories! ...Right??" Sara sent Alberic a desperate look, as if to get back up. He shrugged back at her: He has amnesia, how would he know if they were real or just stories?

Lippy still seemed surprised. "Just stories? I see...Lady Sara. Are Seeds of Ruin 'just stories'?"

They glanced at each other. He had a point but it was still pretty strange to think about the fact that there were actually air ships out there, somewhere. "I guess you're right," Sara said, "It's just a little hard to wrap my head about that specifically."

The sprite sighed at them and leapt down from the rock he had claimed for himself. "Well, it is a bit too late for me to request one now. But how about we try to find a Shrine?"

"A shrine?" Sara and Alberic echoed each other.

Lippy seemed to bounce in place, excited to teach them something new. "Yes--While one can activate hero stones under duress, as what happened when we met you, Great Savior, it is much better to find one of the fountain shrines that house magics that help ease the awakening process."

Alberic tilted his head. "So...I can do it without a shrine, but it's easier to 'awaken' a hero stone with a shrine."

"That's correct!" Lippy chirped. "If we can find a Shrine, we can awaken the hero stone you found, Great Savior, during that battle earlier."

Hm. Alberic stuck his hand in his pocket, feeling the rough edges of the unawakened hero stone. It would be nice to summon someone new--but also, he wondered if he could find out their names right away, instead of wondering who they were for some time before managing to get them before the desummoned back into his key stone.

Then he nodded. "Well, we can look for one while we travel through the forest, right? So let's not rush it."

Sara and Lippy agreed and the trio got up to return to their traveling. It took another hour of traveling before they found the edge of the forest, all of them exhausted from the fighting. It was definitely time for another break...and yet...

"Alright!" Sara pumped the air with her fist, looking proud. "We made it through the woods."

Lippy climbed up to her shoulders, frowning as he spotted something--or someone head of them. "We have....but I do believe those two are the same women from the trailhead earlier.

Huh? Alberic squinted ahead, finally taking noticed of the two figures ahead of them. Somehow the two women they had met in at the trailhead a couple hours earlier had gotten ahead of them--likely due to the breaks they had taken. But that, of course, implied that they didn't take breaks.

Sara hummed. "Guess we're going the same way, then."

Alberic nodded, finally taking his chance to fully give the duo a look over. The shorter of the two, whose name he still didn't know, wore a strange kimono-dress hybrid, which was mainly red and black, with some gold and gray accents. A yellow bow was tied to her upper arm and attached to the back of her obi was a scroll. He wondered what the goggles on her head were for.

Remi was taller than the young woman--girl?--and wore a simple red dress with gold accents and a brown corset. Her soft brown hair seemed to reach mid back, unlike the girl's, whose hair was sheered short. It seemed red was an important color from wherever they came from.

And then Remi tripped as they watched the duo.

"Owww." Remi whimpered, clutching her face. She seemed extra despondent. "Here I was trying so hard not to trip that I walked into a tree branch--and then tripped again anyway."

The girl stomped her foot, her hands on her hips. "This is what I mean! How can you--how can anyone--be this much of a klutz?!" Alberic winced. It seemed her words hadn't gotten any less forward and sharp in the brief time he hadn't seen her.

Remi took a deep breath, pulled her hands from her face, and said, "I'm sorry. I'll--I'll be okay. It's fine."

No, it's not, Lippy, Sara, and Alberic all thought at the same time.

She paused mid motion as she noticed something on the girl's leg. "Oh, Rita!! You have a bug bite on your leg. Hold still--I'll use a healing arte!" A healing arte for a bug bite? Isn't that a bit much?

At least he knew what the girl's name was now.

Of course, Rita didn't...exactly react well to Remi's concern. "H-hey, no! Stop making a big deal out of every single tiny thing that happens to me!" Rita snapped before turning and rushing off down the path.

"Rita!" Remi cried out. "Wait, come back here!"

They watched Remi rush off after Rita, her staff raised as if to threateningly cast a healing arte at her like a fire ball spell.

"Wow." Sara finally managed, watching them disappear beyond the bend. "Those two have some serious issues."

Alberic laughed lightly before the trio followed down the path. Too bad they didn't actually get a chance to talk--Alberic was curious about what that duo were doing out here. Were they just traveling them?

These thoughts circled in his head as the rushing whispers of a river flow reached them. They passed over a hill crest, to stop and admire the river that carved its way through the slowly thinning forest and into the mountains beyond. It was breathtakingly beautiful and Alberic wondered if he had ever seen a sight like this before.

Sara bounded ahead, her ponytail bouncing with her. Lippy shadowed her, his tail held up. Alberic grinned to himself as he followed their steps. The water was crystal clear--somehow, despite the rushing water kicking up the dirt at the bottom. Unfortunate, he thought, because he would've liked to see what the water tasted like.

Oh well, he supposed he'd have to wait. A village would surely reside somewhere along the river, and have a cleaned version of the water available.

"Before we head on," Sara said," Why don't we take a little rest and check our maps? It doesn't look like there's any monsters around."

Lippy hummed in understanding. "A fine idea. After all, we may have a long journey ahead. I'll prepare some tea."

Alberic eyed Lippy as the sprite began his prep work for tea. He turned to Sara, who looked amused. "How."

She laughed. "I have no idea. It's better not to question it, I think." Sara tugged out a map from her bag and rolled it out, the faded parchment crinkling. "We're here, I think. Which means if we keep following the road, we should find...a village, huh? That's not good, if it's near a seed of ruin..." Sara's finger tracked along their future path and only stopped on the village.

"Which means we'll have to move faster, after the break, right?" Alberic frowned at the map.

Sara nodded seriously and studied the map again. Eventually, she looked back up and said, "So, um...Have you managed to remember? Even just a little bit of something?" Alberic felt his expression soften as he shook his head. Sara sighed but brightened. "...I see. Well, we've still got a long way to go!! We've only seen a tiny bit of this world. I bet, as we got to more place, you'll find something to trigger a memory."

He smiled softly, feeling strange. Sara was so concerned--they barely knew each other, he thought, yet she was trying so hard and was so hopeful that he'd remember something. He hoped he was worthy of that kindness.

"And I'm sure that there are people out there that know you well!" Sara's smile was like the sun. "So don't get discouraged! After all, I've got your back!"

Lippy suddenly laid out a small table between the three of them and started serving them tea, surprising the duo. "An earl gray with vanilla cookies--I do hope you enjoy it, Lady Sara and Great Savior."

They both thanked the sprite and dug into the cookies and tea. As they did so, Sara said around her full mouth, "If there's anything you want to ask me, don't hold back!"

Something to ask....hm. She had mentioned something about her being an adventurer earlier. And an adventurer was--Someone who took jobs, into dangerous territories to deliver something or map them out. "Why did you decide to become an adventurer?" He blurted. Alberic may knew the basics of it but...

"Why...?" Sara thought for a moment and then flushed, her entire demeanor turning a bit shy. "I guess it's because I admired my brother so much. He even taught me everything I needed to know to start out."

She paused, as if to let Alberic digest that. Strange--her brother had been the one they had been fighting, when he arrived right? The same one who had apparently been warped by a seed of ruin... Alberic wondered how that had even happened.

Sara took a deep breath before continuing, still shy. "Also, when I was a kid, I had this dream where I left home to go find the most beautiful view in the world. I know how silly and strange that sounds, trying to find something from a dream. But, that was my quest."

"Was?" Alberic cut in, feeling his worry surge up.

Looking into her cup of tea, Sara's voice lowered to a whisper. "On the way, I met Lippy. When I went to help find the savior and the seeds, I learn what happened to my brother...But!" She perked up, smiling brightly. "I know if we keep purifying seeds we'll be able to save him!"

Lippy chuckled as Sara stood up, punching the air. "So that's my quest now!" She declared in a loud voice. "Finding memories and purifying seeds. We're all in this together!"

Alberic smiled as she sat back down. They both snacked a couple more minutes on the rest of the cookies before they decided to stick to the tea. Alberic thought to himself: Is there anything else he wanted to know?

Maybe... "Hey, how did you two meet?" He asked.

Sara jolted and let out a giggle. "How we met? That's a bit of a story. Right, Lippy?"

The sprite flustered, looking delight by also embarrassed. "And quite an embarrassing one, at that." He paused, growing serious once more. "Having been tasked with resolving the crisis here in Liafyse, I was traveling search of the Great Savior. Unfortunately, one day I was attacked by a ferocious monster."

Alberic smiled slightly as Lippy flicked his tail against Alberic's hand. The great savior--him, apparently. He instinctively reached up and touched his key stone, wondering if the fact that it reacted to him being the true sign he was this Great Savior.

Lippy gave a dreamy sigh. "Just when I thought I was done for, Lady Sara rescued me."

"When I was first saving Lippy, I thought it was another human!" Sara laughed. "Imagine the look on my face, when I saw Lippy instead of another human."

Sara put her tea cup down and reached towards Lippy. Lippy responded by leaping into Sara's arms. From there, he said, "Lady Sara kindly offered to aid me in my mission. She possesses a great deal of traveler's knowledge. If I had to find you on my own... I doubt I would have fared as well. And she is a most robust companion."

The adventurer pouted. "'Robust', Lippy, really? Remember, I'm a young lady here! You can better than that." 

"Oh dear, please forgive me!" Lippy apologized, bumping his head against Sara's chin lightly.

She smiled faintly as she teasingly said, "'That Sara, so robust...' Yeesh, Lippy."

Alberic smiled, reaching over to ruffle the sprite's head fur. "I think...no, you two definitely make a good team, you know."

The two looked up at him and Sara said, "You think we make a good team? Heh. Well. I suppose we do!"

"I most vociferously agree!" Lippy chirped from Sara's lap. He paused, leaning forward into the kettle. "Oh, dear! It seems the tea is out, hm? Help me put all of this away, please?"

Sara nodded and the two began picking things up and putting them together. Lippy did something and the items vanished before their eyes. Alberic eyeballed it, baffled. How in the world did that even happen? Ugh, magic was weird, sprite magic doubly so.

Alberic looked up, towards the road the three of them were heading down. "It's time to head on, huh?," Alberic said. Sara nodded in agreement and the trio gathered their way out onto the road. It was a quiet road, with no sign of the women they had kept running across earlier. Alberic hoped they arrived in the village soon: He knew it was getting late.

He'd rather they spent a night in town, than deep in a monster laden forest.

As they walked, the forest began to thing out more and more, the undergrowth the first to complete disappear. The trees grew younger and smaller as they reached the first path up towards the mountains. The same mountains they needed to travel to reach the village, the town, Shale. The same town that was near the seed of ruin they were tracking.

"Lady Sara." Lippy spoke up from his spot by their feet, poking at his smartphon. "The magical reverberations are coming from just ahead of here."

Sara gave the sprite a bright thumbs up. "We looked earlier--there's a town called Shalt. It looks like we'll have to traverse this mountain pass to reach it, though."

Lippy frowned as he looked up from his smartphon. "Traversing through a mountian pass? This route sounds a tad treacherous."

"It's either this way or we give up," Sara said seriously, "We cab't just ignore the signal. Let's just take it one step at a time."

The sprite sighed and put the smartphon down, looking ahead. Alberic unconsciously copied him, looking up the path through the mountains. It didn't seem so bad--but if they ran into any monsters, it'd become much more dangerous.

Sara rolled her shoulders. "Are you ready, Alberic?" She waited for his nod before grinning at him. "Then let's go!’

There was another sigh from Lippy. "Very well. Let us proceed." He leapt ahead of them as they walked. Lippy kept his place far ahead of them, as if waiting and watching for anything that may come out after them. "Do you hear those voices? Do not tell me it is those two again..." 

Alberic frowned and cupped his hands over his forehead, to shield his eyes from the sun. Distantly, somewhere far ahead of them, he could see two red blobs. "I'm...not sure? It looks like those two from earlier, but..." He offered weakly.

"Let me see!!" Sara stopped next to him and copied his pose, peering off into the distance. She stayed like that for a long few moments before nodding sharply. "It's definitely the two from earlier. Their voices seem to be echoing back at us, huh."

Huh. He tilted his head and nodded. Lippy grumbled ahead of them and the two glanced at each other, bemused by Lippy's annoyance. Alberic mused that the sprite was probably more annoyed that they kept running into them somehow, for some reason.

He was more bemused by their constant run ins with the duo than annoyed, himself. It wasn't too surprising--Lippy seemed to be the most paranoid of the three of them and may possibly thinking that they might be planning something. Both he and Sara were content to ignore the two women, unless they approach them.

Which...didn't seem likely?

Either way Alberic was determined to have a good time traveling and peer across the lands the mountains edged. The forests behind them, like a sea of green. Ahead of them, fields of green and gold. He wondered what that gold was. Perhaps wheat or something else?

He could even see the bending river that had carved its way through the mountains. Along its side and in the center of the gold and green fields, was a living town. Smoke wafted from the distant chimneys and Alberic smiled.

Sara pumped her fist next to him. "We're almost to Shalt! Just another hour and we can rest...Oh, wait. It's those two again!" She pointed ahead of them, to the duo in red.

"That's it, up ahead?" Rita spoke up, her voice echoing back to the trio as they approached them.

Remi puffed, jogging to keep up with the smaller girl. "P-please slow down, Rita! This is a really dangerous trail!"

That just seemed to irritate Rita as the younger turned on Remi. "It's no more dangerous than nay other mountain trail. And aren't you supposed to be my guard? Why are you behind me?" There was a hint of mocking in her voice, along with the irritation. Ouch, Alberic thought.

"D-don't say things like that! I'm trying as hard as I can!" The woman was puffed up, clearly trying to get Rita to just respect her--or acknowledge her with anything besides irritation and frustration. "I'll prove my worth to you, you'll see!"

Rita scowled. "Your actions are speaking a whole lot louder than your words. Now hurry up, we're almost at the town." She almost took off, her walking speed more like a hard jog.

Her bodyguard floundered behind her, beyond distraught. "Rita!! Wait for me!" Remi cried out before rushing after the smaller girl once more. That girl Rita, Alberic thought to himself, was way too harsh.

Maybe Remi wasn't super reliable as a bodyguard--but being so harsh wasn't going to help either. You need...to have a balance of kindness and harshness. Outright verbal cruelty was no good.

Sara's voice knocked him out of his thoughts. "Looks like they're headed to Shalt, too." She mused.

Lippy cleared his throat and both Alberic and Sara looked down at him. "Lady Sara," He said, "The reverberations of the seeds of ruin are growing stronger. Perhaps we should proceed with caution."

The adventurer nodded. "Yeah. That sounds like a good idea--We don't know what to expect."

* * *

Shalt was empty when they arrived. No one walked the streets, and though the chimneys wafted with smoke, Alberic could see no one in the windows of those houses. It was strange, for a town to be so quiet. Right?

"I guess this is Shalt, huh?" Sara mumbled out loud, her gaze shifting over the empty streets, "Something it seems...kind of off."

Lippy suddenly bristled in the girl's arms, his fur puffing up and making him look like a cotton ball. "Lady Sara! Monsters!" He leapt from her hands to her feet, magic already being gathered in his paws.

Sara's hand was already on her sword. "Here, in the village?" She snarled, looking furious. "We gotta get `em out of here!"

The monsters roared at them and Alberic's hand closed around his key stone. Magic surged within and he saw two of the warriors from before appeared ahead of him. Instead of the strange pick haired girl from before, a silver haired man in a black coat and twin sword of black and teal appeared, taking a spot next to his comrades.

Alberic didn't have a chance to wonder where the girl had gone, instead pointing and commanding the trio to attack. Another hero appeared behind Alberic and danced around him, wearing a white and black kimino. The new hero's sword flashed as he defended Sophie.

Velvet spun like a tornado around Sara and Lippy, a storm of blood and defeat. The monsters' numbers were slowly cut down, leaving them to melt away as if they had never been there to being with. It reminded him of...something.

He was really starting to hate these flashes of something at the edge of his mind. It was just downright distracting. Perhaps once he got his memories back, he'd finally be free of that.

But, anyway. Alberic kicked a smaller monster away from him, right into the path of the red haired kimono hero. He cut the monster down, his long red hair drifting behind him. Alberic was glad, suddenly, that they had stopped at that shrine hidden in the grass before Shalt.

Sara was twirling around with the his heroes and water was splashing down around them--Wait. That wasn't one of Lippy's arts nor had Alberic summoned a hero with magic. Who was--?

Rita stood her hand raised. Her eyes flashed as she yelled. "Damn it! There's so many! Remi, how goes it?!"

It? What's 'it'?

"Everyone please calmly evacuate while I engage the monsters!" Remi was on the other sid eof Shalt, her voice echoing across the streets. Distantly, Alberic could see people rushing past her red form. Children, elderly, so many people who should not fight. And then Remi screamed.

Sara was already dancing through the storm of monsters to reach the older woman. "Remi, don't take on more than you can handle!" Rita yelled across the streets. Alberic pursed his lips and called one of his heroes to aid Sara's fight.

Said adventurer reached Remi, her hand on the girl's elbow. "Are you okay?" Alberic could barely hear her words over the monsters they were trying to defeat.

Whatever Remi said in return was lost to said yelling. The cacophony of monster roaring and firing artes drowned their voices, as it did Rita's following yell as she moved towards them. The trio of women spoke to each other before Rita's voice once more roared over the din. "You lot! Take care of the monsters already inside the village!"

Sara was half way across toe Alberic again as he heard her speak. "Roger that! Lippy, Al, let's go!" Alberic nodded sharply and jabbed his hands to his heroes and to the monsters they could still ahead of them.

There ahead of them were more monsters. Not as many as before, but it was going to be tough going. As they moved, Alberic tilted his head to Sara. "Are the villagers alright?" He asked.

"I think so." She muttered back. "But we won't know for sure until these monsters are taken care of."

The battle burned on and Alberic felt the first pull of exhaustion. They had been fighting for hours all day. The monsters were slowing down, though, less than there were before. Alberic deftly pointed his heroes at the final ones, watching tiredly as Lippy's holy artes speared those his own heroes didn't touch. And Sara? Sara still danced around the monsters, cutting them down with expert ease.

He wondered, where had she learned that skill?

Alberic watched his heroes vanishing before him and then he fell to his kness with a tired groan. Sara slumped down next to him with Lippy curling around their feet.

"Glad everyone made it out okay." Sara mumbled as she leaned against Alberic's side. "But what was up with all those monsters? Where the heck did they come from?"

"From Zola Forest, apparently." Rita's voice echoed around them as she approached the trio. Sara's head snapped expression grim. Alberic didn't blame her: Zola Forest...that was just past Shalt, wasn't it? Rita continued speaking. "I'm Rita, and that's Remi. You guys seem to know your way around a fight--I'm glad you were here."

Alberic nodded. "Well," He said, "I'm glad too."

Sara grinned at him triedly before giving Rita a quick thumbs up. "I'm Sara. These two are Lippy and Alberic." She paused before taking a deep breath. "Could you explain what you meant about the Zola Forest?"

Rita shook her head, looking grim. "I don't know much myself. The villagers were saying that monsters have been coming from Zola Forest, to the north. The only other thing was...No, never mind."

Alberic narrowed his eyes. Only other thing? If there was something else, than she should be telling them. Especially as Lippy was poking at his smartphon again.

"Lady Sara, Great Savior..." Lippy said, voice grim, "It appears our destiny now lies within Zola Forest."

To the trio's surprise, Rita jolted at Lippy's words. "What--You can talk?!" What, was it that weird? Alberic supposed it might be--but to him it wasn't at all. He was...probably biased though, considering all he could remember was Lippy and Sara. Of course it wouldn't be strange to him.

Lippy chuckled. "Ah, that reaction does take me back. I do believe Lady Sara said the exact same thing."

Remi suddenly squeaked in delight, speaking for the first time since the fight ended. "It's...so cute! Is this your pet, Sara? Can you shake hands? Shake!" Remi...no, Alberic thought.

"Good heavens!" Yep, Lippy was offended. "I am not a dog!" The sprite puffed and turned his attention to Sara. "Lady Sara we should be on our way."

Alberic raised a hand and said, "Wait a moment, Lippy. It's starting to get dark. It'll be too dangerous at night--and we need to rest." The sprite seemed to wilt at his words, but saw the point: They'd die if they tried to fight with impaired vision and exhaustion tugging at them.

Sara nodded slowly. "Okay...well thanks for the info, Rita! Maybe we'll catch you later--Let's go find a place to stay, you guys, maybe."

Rita suddenly shoved up in front of Sara, her hands on her hips. "Hold up a minute! You're going into the Zola Forest?"

The trio exchanged looks and Lippy nodded warily to them: He'd let them make the choice on what to say to Rita. Sara took a deep breath and said, "Yep. Looks like we don't have a choice in the matter--But we're doing it tomorrow. In daylight."

"Well." Rita waved a hand. "That makes two of us. I hate to be blunt, but just try to stay out of our way, all right?" Hate to be blunt? Alberic raised an eyebrow: Rita made an art form out of being blunt--how in the world could she hate it?

Remi puffed up suddenly, looking eager. "Or--Or we could all travel together! The more the merrier, as they say!"

Urp, Alberic couldn't tell if Rita was angry or embarrassed. "Remi, wait a second!" Rita snapped.

Sara spoke over Rita, grinning at Remi. "You sure you don't mind? We'd certainly feel better having you guys beside us!" Woah, that's not true! Alberic was pretty sure Rita would kill him in his sleep if he did something to piss her off.

Rita though just seemed far too startled to actively argue. Weird. Were bulldozing, oblivious girls her weakness?

But that was how he found himself in a tiny inn with three girls and a heavenly sprite. It was...awkward and not awkward all at once. Something about five people just seemed...right. Even if the people themselves weren't.

Of course, the next morning Alberic was up and out of the room before any of the girls woke up. He did not want to have any of them get angry at him in the night, even if it was unlikely for Sara or Remi to attack him. Rita, on the other hand...

Okay, fine he was scared of a tiny girl. She was terrifying, okay? Those artes were nasty, and he didn't want any of them being thrown at him!

While he was coweri--er, eating breakfast, the other four got up and got ready for the day. The sunlight streamed in and they were, eventually, all packed and ready to go once more. Sara was as excited as always for traveling and Lippy had decided Alberic's shoulders were a good resting place. Remi and Rita...well, he didn't know them well enough yet to know if this was their usual mornings.

Travel to the forest took less than a hour, a gods send when one considered the amount of fighting they'd have to do once inside. Especially with the seeds of ruin hiding out within. Perhaps even a ruinator, which just sounded _delightful._

Great, sarcasm in his head. Was this normal? He had a feeling it might be normal.

They arrived at the edges of the Forest and the first of their traveling group to speak was Rita. With, wel, the obvious. "So, this is Zola Forest." She paused as she peered into the shadows. "I'd heard the monsters around here weren't very aggressive, and yet..."

And yet they had attacked Shalt in mass just the day before. If that wasn't normal behavior, than Lippy's readings were beyond right. They were spot on. That was good to know, in Alberic's limited experience.

Lippy cleared his throat. "Forgive my brusqueness, Lady Rita, but what brings you to this forest?" He asked.

Rita looked away, her gaze still drifting back into the shadows of the Forest. "Just...professional curiosity," She said, "And what about you lot? What's your business here?"

Her bodyguard puffed up before any of the trio could reply. "Rita is a magical artes researcher, for the Kingdom of Euraia!" Rita squawked Remi's name and Remi deflated, as if realizing what she had done.

"Huh!" Sara hummed, looking interested. And also relieved. "I'd heard only a small handful of people are able to get an elite gig like that..."

Remi puffed up again, looking proud as she clutched at her staff. "You heard right." She declared proudly. "And even in that company, Rita's the best of the best." Best of the best huh? Alberic could almost hear the hero worship in Remi's voice. No wonder she wanted to protect Rita so badly...

"What is wrong with you, Remi?" Rita demanded, looking flush. "You can't just blab my life story to strangers of uncertain loyalties!"

Uncertain...loyalties? What did that mean? What, did she think them spies from another kingdom, when they were just travelers aiming to save the world? Then again, Alberic supposed he might not believe the world was in danger if he hadn't seen seeds of ruin and a ruinator with his own eyes.

Remi shook her head. "It's fine! Don't be so dramatic, Rtia. They saved our lives, yesterday."

Rita rolled her eyes, looking furious instead of embarrassed now. "No Remi, they saved your life," She said, her voice full of callous ferocity. "And I'm beginning to question how grateful I should be for that!"

"Don't say that." Alberic suddenly snapped, feeling a strange put of anger and grief in his chest. "You shouldn't--say that about people. You'll regret it."

Lippy went still on Alberic's shoulders, as if the sprite hadn't expected the fierce rebuttal. The rest of the group looked at Alberic and he...looked away. How could he even explain that? He just...didn't like the idea of someone saying that about anyone, even if they didn't like said person.

The rest of their walk through the forest was rather subdued, as if Alberic's stern rebuttal colored the rest of it. He felt a little bad about that--he hadn't meant to make things awkward like he had. It was too little too late, though. Because even if he felt bad about making things awkward, he didn't regret what he said for even an instant.

Still, at least Lippy kept to his spot of Alberic's shoulders. It meant that at least he hadn't totally ruined everything. It was only because of this vantage point that he saw Lippy tapping away at his smartphon, before Lippy spoke. "The readings are getting stronger, Lady Sara. I believe that it may lie just ahead."

Sara looked up from where she was trying to make conversation with Remi. Her stance went determined and she nodded at Lippy. "Yeah...Okay." She tilted her head down as Alberic stepped up closer to her as she muttered. "If that's you, Caesar--I swear, I'll save you this time."

Remi frowned in the background, muttering something to Rita that Alberic missed. He also missed Rita's reply to the bodyguard, but not her announcement. Her expression was grim. "We're almost toe heart of the forest, right where we calculated the anomaly would be. I need to see what's going on."

Anomaly? Wait had they tracked the seeds of ruin as well? Alberic exchanged looks with the sprite on his shoulders. That didn't bode well: What if someone came searching and got infected, like Caesar did?

The forest seemed to flash from green to purple. The shift in color also shifted the tone--Now, the forest felt ominous and cold, as if something within the undergrowth and shadows was hunting them down. Or wanted to hunt them down, in any case.

Alberic knelt down and the others followed his example. Beyond the bushes he skirted, massive groups of monsters milled together. A couple would get into a scuffle, their red blood stark against the purpling grasses and leaves.

"Oh geez..." Sara whispered into his ear. "I've never seen so many monsters in one place before."

On his other side, Rita was gently lowering a branch to peer into the clearings beyond. "This seems to be their nesting ground. But what made them become so aggressive?" She wondered as she noted the violence Alberic had spotted earlier.

Lippy hissed, his voice quiet as he spoke to Alberic and Sara. "Great Savior, Lady Sara! It appears the seed of ruin that fell here is what is driving the monsters mad!" Alberic clenched his teeth. If that was what was causing it then...

"Gotcha." Sara's expression was mask of soberly grim. "So we've got to fight our way through these monsters to purify that seed."

Unfortunately, Sara spoke a little too loud, and Remi leaned around Rita, her pale eyes wide. "Wait, what now?! You're making it sound like you intend to do battle with all these monsters..." Are you trying to get yourselves killed, was clear in her voice.

Alberic nodded. "Yeah, we are."

"If we don't take them down, they'll attack the village again," Sara said grimly, peering back at Remi.

Rita shifted next to Alberic, giving them both hard looks as she puffed out a sigh. "Hoo boy." She muttered. "Well, if that's your plan, we should find a way to pick them off one by one instead of charging into their midst. Luckily, they haven't noticed us yet." Which was likely only because the scents of the forest was covering their own. For now.

Remi let out a soft breath. "R-Rita, you can't--"

"If you're frightened, Remi, you can wait here until we're finished." Rita hissed, her hand on her scroll. Her weapon. Remi shook her head and for a moment, Alberic tuned them out. Where would be the best vantage point to start the strikes? He was distracted from his musings by Sara's name being spoken. "--Sara, let's see if you guys can really pull this off."

Sara touched his elbow, her expression serious. "Let's go, Al, and show them what we're made of."

Alberic smiled. "Yeah."

Rita and Remi went to one end on Sara's orders--To blast the enemies from above, with their spell artes. Lippy refused to join them, saying he was perfectly safe on Alberic's shoulders. Alberic and Sara were going to be the ground forces, with one of his heroes guarding him and Lippy from harm while the other three and the shadowy heroes did their work.

It worked well enough, to begin with. The monsters didn't expect to be attacked in their own nest and thus the startled ones with culled off quickly. It was the quick responders that were the hardest and longest lived--the ones who fought back against Sara's dancing blade and Alberic's heroes and the casters' spell artes.

But they fell too, just as they planned. What they didn't plan for, was for the seed to be attached to a monster.

It might as well have been a ruinator, Alberic thought to himself as it dashed straight at him. It was pretty clear that the monster saw him as the biggest threat, despite Sara's blade and the duo above's artes. Or perhaps, it saw Lippy as the true threat? Either way, his heroes were already spinning close to confront the beast.

The monster's shrieks echoed in his ears, as every slash and attack did more damage. Even Sophie's little umbrella did damage, despite the odds. Lippy took the chance to bind the monster in place and Sara drove her sword to where the see was attached to the beast's fur. It shrieked once more, trying to shake her off. No such luck, as she pulled the blade--and the seed--free from its pelt.

Alberic watched it crumble and wondered if it was dead. He approached, his heroes shadowing him--and he jolted back as it began its death throes. Velvet slipped past him and jabbed her sword down, ending the throes before they became too violent.

"Sorry." He whispered to her. The hero shook her head before she and the others vanished. Lippy's claws pulled from his shoulder and he forgot that Lippy was there--and hadn't even noticed the claws.

Sara's hand touched his. "Al, are you okay?" There was a hint of frantic worry there, like she thought he was going to die.

He smiled at her. "I'm okay--er, wait, 'Al'?" She'd...called him that before, hadn't she? Multiple times, actually, now that he thought on it.

She flushed. "A-ah, I thought it was easier to yell during a battle then just Alberic--um, here's the seed!" Why was she so embarrassed?? Alberic was bemused but accepted the seed. On his shoulder, Lippy began prep work for the purification.

As he finished, Rita and Remi approached them from their high spot. "The seed has been safely purified. I do believe the area is safe now," Lippy said as the seed seemed to crumble away before their eyes.

Sara paused and looked up and around, as if searching for something. She sighed, like a heavy burden was weighing down on her shoulders once more. "And there's no sign of Caesar..."

"Well, I think it's high time we asked. Who exactly are you people?" Rita's voice cut through Alberic's attempt at comfort.

Both he and Sara stared at Rita, their serious expressions matching in every way. They couldn't tell her--they shouldn't tell her, either. "Monsters going mad? Seeds of ruin?" She went on. "I want to hear everything you know about it, including your role in this!"

Lippy suddenly reached up and tangled his claws against Alberic's leg. "You may tell her, Great Savior, Lady Sara. Everything that you feel is safe to tell her."

Alberic exchanged a look with Sara before the latter nodded. "Okay..." she began. "So it's like this..."

The story took an hour to tell. They spoke of her and Lippy's first meeting and Lippy's mission. She even mentioned her brother's condition and how dangerous the seeds of ruin were--and of the Ruinators. With his permission, Sara also told them of Alberic's own missing memories.

"And so, now we're traveling the world, purifying the seeds of ruin." Sara finished.

Rita's arms were crossed as she thought, as if trying to guage whether or not they were being honest. Eventually, she sighed. "You're saying it's those seeds that have driven all the monsters mad... When I set out to investigate this magical anomaly that certainly wasn't the hypothesis I had in mind. That said." Rita turned away, her hands on her hips. "I have an incident report to make, and nowhere near enough evidence for it. Come on, Remi. We're moving on."

Remi squawked as Rita took a couple more steps ahead of them and then stopped. Rita's piercing gaze pinned Alberic, as she looked at him over her shoulder. "And you lot? Keep what you know about this to yourselves. Not a word to anyone. If you learn anything new, come report it to me in Euraia. No matter what, got that?"

Sara smiled faintly. "Sure."

"Then we're done here," Rita said cooly, turning and walking back into the forest the way they came. Remi yelped and followed after, pleading with the mage to slow down and wait for her.

The adventurer at his side wilted like a tired flower, her exhaustion clear for all to see. "I guess we should be going too." She mumbled. "We need to get back to Shalt, and tell them it's safe."

Lippy yelped at their feet and the human duo looked down at their third. "Lady Sara, I'm getting another reading! To the east, this time!," He said.

"To the east..." Sara muttered softly.

The tiny sprite looked up from his smartphone, suddenly looking guilty. "Ah, but of course, you and the Great Savior must be exhausted. Perhaps we should return to Shalt and rest up for the evening."

Sara smiled, the skin around her eyes crinkling slightly. "Yeah, that's probably for the best. Let's go!!" Alberic nodded and Lippy took lead. They retraced their steps back to Shalt, never noticing their silent watcher...

* * *

A blond man smiled to himself. "This has certainly taken an interesting turn." He murmured to himself, slowly turning from where the trio vanished into the woods. "Perhaps I should inform my noble knight about this development..."

And so he too disappeared into the woods of Zola Forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey bandai namco can yall stop closing down the mobile games we like to play.

**Author's Note:**

> i'm....still upset link is closing down.
> 
> The three mentioned heroes are 5 star heroes: [Welcoming Spring] Velvet, [Puddle Splasher] Sophie, [Gentle Soul} Kana. They're my leading team for the past...idk month? so I thought it'd be nice to use them
> 
> I chose Alberic for a name because it started with the 'Al' like Allen and I wanted the 'great savior's' 'true name' to match the cover name.


End file.
